CLOVER CULTURE. 17 



The cultivation of clover seems to have spread as rapidly 

 in England as it has in the Mississippi states of America in 

 the last few years, for in less than twelve years, that is, before 

 1655, its cultivation, exactly according to the present method, 

 seems to have been well known in England, and had also 

 made its way to Ireland. The little change that has been 

 made in the methods of cultivating clover in that country 

 would seem to indicate that those early farmers had hit on 

 about the right method. When a method does reasonably 

 well, there is no inducement to change, and it is only when this 

 method fails that farmers are forced to a more profound study 

 of the principles involved. In the moist climate of England 

 and of Flanders, and in the comparatively moist climate of the 

 Eastern states, surface-sown clover, and especially when sown 

 on winter wheat or rye, in the months of February or March y 

 did reasonably well, but when it was tried on the lighter and 

 drier soils of the West, and especially on spring grains, sown 

 generally in April, the failures in securing a stand became 

 very much more frequent. Farmers in these newer coun- 

 tries have, therefore, been compelled to get hold of the great 

 principles that underlie the growth of clover in any and all 

 countries and apply them to their own particular circumstan- 

 ces. Five things are essential to plant life: A soil that has 

 all the elements of fertility essential to the life of that plant; 

 that soil in a proper physical and mechanical condition, and 

 in addition to these two, light, heat and moisture. No mat- 

 ter how fertile the soil, or how abundant may be the elements 

 of fertility especially adapted to the plant, no plant will even 

 germinate in utter darkness. For this reason clover bedded; 

 in a manure heap, with every element of fertility needed and 

 with abundance of moisture and heat, will not germinate ex- 

 cept where it lies near the surface and secures the proper de- 

 gree of light. No matter what may be the light, moisture, 

 or fertility, plants will not germinate at zero nor where the 

 temperature is continually below the point of freezing. No 

 matter how suitable the temperature, the sunshine or the fer- 

 tility, they will not germinate without sufficient moisture, 

 and no matter how completely all these elements are com- 

 bined they will not make a profitable growth unless the soil 

 is in a proper mechanical condition to meet the requirements 

 of the plant. It is only by the proper combination of all 

 these essentials that success is attained. 



Of all the multitude of elements that enter into the com- 

 position of the clover plant, all soils have an inexhaustible 



